The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a show cause notice in a writ petition filed by the CPN-UML challenging the dissolution of the House of Representatives in September.

The Constitutional Bench headed by Chief Justice Prakash Man Singh Raut ordered the defendants, including the Office of the President, to submit a written response within a week.

The bench ordered the court administration to present the petition together with other similar petitions. The bench declined to issue an interim order as sought by the plaintiff.

The top court had earlier issued a similar order in other petitions challenging the House dissolution

The UML moved the apex court on November 25, arguing that the dissolution of the House of Representatives was carried out unconstitutionally.

The party filed the petition demanding the restoration of the lower house. The petition was signed by former chief whip Mahesh Bartaula and whip Sunita Baral on behalf of the then parliamentary party of the UML.

The petitioners have asked the court to declare the appointment of Sushila Karki as prime minister unconstitutional. They argued that her appointment was against the articles 76 and 132(2) of the constitution as she was not a member of the House of Representatives and had already served as chief justice.

As per the constitutional provision, one must be a member of the lower House to become a prime minister.

President Ramchandra Paudel however appointed her prime minister on September 12 citing special circumstances in the aftermath of the Gen Z uprising.

The petitioners seek an order invalidating her appointment, along with the President’s decision of September 12 and all subsequent actions taken by her government.

They have requested the court to quash the prime minister’s recommendation to dissolve the House made on September 12, restore the House by treating the period after September 8 as a void, and ensure that all state bodies operate in their previous form. They have also sought an order directing the President to initiate the government formation process under article 76, given that then prime minister KP Sharma Oli had already resigned.

They have asked the court to halt all processes related to the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5. Considering the seriousness and sensitivity of the matter, they have urged the court to seek written responses from the defendants, fix an early hearing date, and conduct continuous hearings.